Your top 5 venues

[Zerkalo]

Just thinking about my favourite places to fish and was wondering what people's top 5 venues are?

1) Patshull Park
- for Bream feeder fishing, probably my favourite kind of fishing, they allow keepnets for pleasure fishing too which is perfect for this kind of weight building fishing.
2) River Severn, Arley
- can't beat the Barbel day I had here, only fished it twice and had 11 barbel.
3) Furnace Mill
- my favourite commercial, immaculately maintained venue and fish with no damage, good chance of big Bream and Roach as well as the usual Carp.
4) River Stour, Kinver
- a local weirpool a short drive/walk from my house that holds plenty of big Perch, Bream, Pike and Chub in the 2 to 4;bs bracket.
5) Staffs Worcs Canal, Caunsall
- just because it's local, I love canal fishing, even if there seems to be more Perch than Roach here.

 

[smiffy]

1- The river Wye. It flows for one,which not many Essex rivers do. It’s possible for people like me who only make the occasional visit to taste the buzz of Barbel fishing.
2- The river Severn around Bridgenorth. Used to stay in this area for many years but has gradually got harder and harder with a lot of fish showing up last knockings. If it was on my doorstep it wouldn’t matter but because of this it’s pushed into second place.
3- River Blackwater,Essex. Now,this is an Essex river that does flow. Often artificially thanks to water pumped from the fens. It’s tiny but where I learnt to fish a stick float. It has suffered down the years from pollution and,now,neglect but there’s a few places that you can get on in the winter and still run a stick down the river.
4-Ardleigh resevoir. Nice big water that needs a bit of watercraft to find the shoals of big Bream. The females average over 7lb in spring but turning up and fishing,without prebaiting,is a real challenge. Of course,this makes the red letter days all the more memorable.
5- Holland. Haven’t been able to get out there for a few years but it’s something else. Massive Bream,up to and over 10lb and not pellet fed. 6-7lb Ide in running water. Plenty of Barbel,although many stocked by the Dutch authorities thanks to a few making their way down from Germany. Rivers that make the Trent look like a ditch with flow to go with it and big lakes full of giant Bream. The Roach fishing ain’t bad either. I’m not a Pike,Perch or Zander angler but it would be heaven for anyone that enjoys that sort of fishing. Oh,there’s big Carp aswell and Grass Carp and gusta’s(Silver Bream) and freshwater herrings,Asp.

 

[Zerkalo]

On Patsull so far the only pegs I've fished have been known hotspots so I'm not sure how the rest of the lake would fish yet. Have heard on some days, clear and calm, it can be quiet. The Severn at Bridgenorth I need to fish, the reason I like Arley, other than catching a few fish there, is the accesibility, you can park right by the river. I'm going to have to ask at a Bridgenorth tackle shop about the places to fish although I hear theres platforms to fish from in places. Holland I'd love to go. Been to Ireland twice and ranks up with the best Bream fishing I've done.

 

[smiffy]

Like I say,I haven’t fished round Bridgenorth for a few years now but all of us noticed a definite drop in sport over the last few years we fished it. Liking our food and beer we didn’t really want to be sitting it out until dusk before going back to the digs. If the river was up and running with a bit of colour it was ok but having to organise our trips in advance meant we couldn’t guarantee perfect conditions.
Ironically,it was a group of anglers at Arley that told us to sack the Severn and go to the Wye. We fish for bites rather than specimens so that was the better bet. We’d been driving up and down Barbel alley that week and really struggling.
Having said that it’s a few years since I’ve been to the Wye so that may be a harder challenge now.
Watching Halton Danglers video though shows that if you find them they’re still there?
I talk to as many Carp anglers as possible when trying to find Bream?

 

[Zerkalo]

When I get my Kinver Freeliners AC membership it will open up another Bream lake that's probably a bit more typical than Patshull, Chelmarsh Reservoir.

That and some stretches of the Severn I can already try like Hampton Load which is avaialable on day ticket.

But the big one on their books is Dudmaston Hall a Tench Estate lake.

 

[Ken the Pacman]

Lough Erne, if I continued to fish it every day for 20 years I would probably manage about a third of it.
Loch Ken is a place I must revisit sometime always enjoyed fishing that place.
Only fishery I would really look forward to visiting .. The Glebe.
Had many happy days on rivers all over the country but would go for the Dee or the Trent currently but Shrewsbury would be a contender too.
Canals it would be a toss up between the Bridgewater or the Leeds and Liverpool.

 

[Northantslad]

1) River Severn Highley
2) River Severn Hampton Loade (dropping, on the favorite list, not the river level)
3) River Severn Bewdley
4) River Severn Danesford
5) River Severn Bridgnorth

All day ticket stretches and favorite pegs worked out from 15 years of my own hard work and trying at possibly 2 to 3 times a year. There are other sections around these areas that are syndicate, or some that a group or individual run and will also guide you on, right down to where to run your float or put your feeder, if that is your thing.

 

[smiffy]

Hampton Loade is where I saw my first ever Barbel. My old man moved to the black country and on one visit he took us to the pub there,can’t remember the name sorry. We left as they were weighing in a club match and some of the nets of Barbel were staggering. I’d never seen one and some lads were putting a dozen or more on the scales. That’s what sparked my interest in having a go for them. Maybe I should have relocated like him.

 

[Silverfisher]

Hard choices here could have easily made a top 10 but I’ve narrowed it down to 6 as below:

1. River Thames Medley: my most regularly venue that I’ve fish at least half a dozen times a year for about 8 years now. Stunning location that produces bags of silvers well over 20lb for the match boys so even I can do comfortable double figure bags on float or feeder. Has produced for us roach to 1lb, perch to over 3lb, Bream and Tench 5-6lb, pike to mid doubles plus Dace, bleak, gudgeon, Chub, Rudd and silver Bream.

2. Pimlico Farm Fishery: My most visited venue as I’ve fished it 4-5 times a year for 15 years now. 2 Pretty lakes (I fish the big one way more than the little one) that very consistently produce for me 15lb plus bags of good roach topped up with a good few perch averaging a pound these days all on the float. Have had roach to 2lb, perch to 2.5lb, Tench to 4-5lb and carp to 17lb out of them.

3. Warwickshire Avon just upstream of Stratford upon Avon: Only fished it a few times so far but fallen for it already as it’s a lovely looking trotting venue that produces nice bags roach, perch and Dace and the odd decent pike. Going to visit more soon for sure.

4. Dorset Stour Meadowbank: Fished it about half a dozen times but will definitely be back as it’s produced some of the best Dace fishing I’ve experienced on float and feeder. Main reason to go back is that I’ve only scratched the surface on the roach and Chub potential having seen what others have caught on it.

River Severn Highley: Fished it a couple times last year and will be back this autumn as it produces some brilliant fishing on float and feeder with great Dace and roach bags, a PB 5.5lb Chub and my first river barbel.

6. River Itchen down stream of Winchester: Couldn’t leave this one off as it’s been a once or twice a year venue for me for about 6 years now as it’s so different to anywhere else I fish. Had 20 plus grayling on my best day there and often manage mid teens with fish to 2lb plus anywhere from half a dozen to two dozen trout each time up to a similar size.

 

[Wise Owl]

River Trent.
River Swale.
River Wharfe Tadcaster.
River Wharfe Boston Spa.
River Aire (Winter)

 

[HALTON DANGLER]

River Dane
Bridgewater Canal
River Dee
River Wye
River Mersey

 

[NoCarpPlease]

Writing as predominantly a "natural" water match angler

• Great Ouse - Radwell & Sharnbrook. My local venue growing up, I fished my first proper match there in 1984 and have seen it through many changes since then. Had a ten year sojourn when there were no matches on it - but now try to get there a couple of times a year.
• River Wye - Hereford and surrounds. So much variety and options. All three of the 2 pound roach I've caught have been here.
• Warks Avon - Upstream of Stratford. My nearest river that rewards finesse in feeding and tackle. Like the Wye, you can frame in matches here with Chub, Barbel, perch, dace or roach - and the Avon can add bream to that list!
• Trent (East Bridgford and around Newark) - fabulous roach fishing a decade or so back (haven't been for 5 years now) although the biggest match I won on there was with near 40 pounds of Barbel
• Grand Union Canal - Small Heath ... a complete contrast to the mainly rural locations above. Sadly they don't run matches on there any more, but it was a great venue for roach and skimmers. With few genuine features you could frame from anywhere - and the average weights were really high.

 

[tipitinmick]

1, River Trent. ( Besthorpe )
2, River Swale. ( Cundal lodge farm )
3, River Dove ( Tutbury )
4, River Ouse ( Acaster Malbis )
5, River Erewash.

 

[Zerkalo]

• Grand Union Canal - Small Heath ... a complete contrast to the mainly rural locations above. Sadly they don't run matches on there any more, but it was a great venue for roach and skimmers. With few genuine features you could frame from anywhere - and the average weights were really high.

Is that Small Heath in Birmingham? Definitely not rural is so...

I fished the Staffs Worcs Canal at Caunsall for a couple of hours today and had about 20 roach and perch. I think I need a new venue for 5th spot. It's not bad and I love fishing canals but it's certainly not great fishing there. I have commercials nearby including Moorlands Farm, Woodland View, Sion Farm and Bells Mill that are all decent venues for commercials but would be knocked off the top 5 by a decent stretch of canal.

Nice to see so many rivers mentioned here.

 

[Silverfisher]

If I had extended mine to a top 10 the rest would have been rivers as well. Would have gone for the Thames at Sanford, Clifton Hampden and chertsey and the ouse at olney.

 

[Maesknoll]

Anywhere peaceful......

 

[Geoff P]

Anywhere there are fish with no passers by asking stupid questions.